WeeklyTrailNASA astronomy image shows unusual rainbow-like fan over Italy
NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day for October 20, 2026, features a partial rainbow-like fan photographed at sunset in Presenzano, Italy, where the Sun appears to be in the wrong place.
Science
NASA JPL Marks 90 Years With Plans for Mars, Moon and Asteroid Missions
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is marking 90 years since Caltech students began rocket tests in Pasadena, while outlining future missions including helicopters over Mars, drones at the lunar South Pole and an asteroid-hunting telescope.
MTG-I2 weather satellite launched on Ariane 6
Europe's MTG-I2 weather satellite lifted off on 27 August 2026 aboard an Ariane 6 rocket from French Guiana, the ninth flight of the heavy-lift launcher and its first to geostationary transfer orbit.
NASA Sonifies Eagle Nebula Pillars in October 18 Astronomy Image
NASA's October 18, 2026 Astronomy Picture of the Day pairs a Hubble and Chandra view of the Eagle Nebula's pillars with a sonification that turns stars and dust into sound.
MTG-I2 launches to complete Europe's first Meteosat Third Generation trio
Europe's second Meteosat Third Generation Imager satellite has launched on Ariane 6 flight VA270 from French Guiana, completing the first family of MTG satellites, according to ESA.
NASA Tests Thinner Rotor Blades for Future Mars Helicopters
NASA researchers, working with Imperial College London and Nagoya University, have tested a new rotor blade airfoil called roamx-0201 that simulations suggest could extend a Mars helicopter's single-flight range far beyond Ingenuity's 0.7 kilometers.
Uzbekistan becomes 77th Artemis Accords signatory at Samarkand ceremony
Uzbekistan signed the Artemis Accords in Samarkand, becoming the 77th country to commit to the principles guiding safe and transparent civil space exploration, NASA said.
New oxygen "ghosts" imaged near Gamma Cassiopeiae
A team reports three faint nebulas in Cassiopeia after 100 hours of observation with a special oxygen filter, alongside the known IC 59 and IC 63. Their origins remain unexplained.
BepiColombo begins Mercury arrival sequence with module separation
ESA and JAXA's BepiColombo mission took its first step toward Mercury on 3 September 2026, when the Mercury Transfer Module was scheduled to separate from the stacked spacecraft after eight years in the inner Solar System.
ESA's week in images covers Ariane 6 launch and astronaut training
The European Space Agency's Week in images for 24-28 August 2026 shows the Ariane 6 launch carrying the MTG-I2 satellite, astronaut Sophie Adenot at work, and other mission activities.
NASA APOD for October 22, 2026: illustration of white dwarf WD J1330+6435
NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day for October 22, 2026, featured an illustration of the white dwarf WD J1330+6435, shown with an accretion disk of gas and rocks orbiting it.
NASA Reports Progress on Fission Power Module for SR-1 Freedom Mars Mission
NASA says contract actions will advance the nuclear power module for Space Reactor-1 Freedom, planned to launch in late 2028 as the first fission-powered spacecraft to travel beyond Earth orbit.
